I am honored to be able to serve God here in Alice as your Interim Pastor for a time.
Biographical Sketch of Pastor Wendy
Everyone keeps asking me about my history. So, here goes…
I was born and raised in Stillwater, Oklahoma. I grew up in a broken and alcoholic home. We were “Holiday Christians”, meaning that we went to church on Christmas and Easter. That was just often enough for me to know that I could turn to the Church when life got extremely difficult in High School. I had my “Aha” moment shortly after I started attending church when I realized that someday all my family and their reputation would pass away and that the only thing about me that would never change and that I could always be proud to claim was that I was a Child of God!
I was active in FFA, Speech Contests and Parliamentary Procedure Competition in High School. With plans to attend OSU and study Agricultural Economics, I was surprised when I found myself mailing an application to one of our Presbyterian Colleges in Arkansas. I got a full scholarship and attended University of the Ozarks in 1986 as an Accounting Major. After only a couple months, I knew God was calling me to the ministry. I worked summers at Church camps, and I lead a youth group during the school year. I was still a “Baby Christian” when I started preaching a couple times a month thru Ozarks Area Mission (OAM) at various little country churches. I went under care of my Presbytery with plans to go to Seminary after college.
Then the really strange part of my life happened. I met my Mother-in-Law. It was one of those rare cases where the mother picks her own Daughter-in-Law and it works. Eric had given her a list of what he wanted in a wife and told her, “If you ever find her, grab her!” So, she did. During my Jr. year of college we had a snow storm that dropped 14” of snow on the flat roof of our church. While I was shoveling snow off the roof the pastor walked by below me….What else cold I do but carefully dump snow on his head? Eric’s mom saw me and knew I was the right one for her son. A couple months later, I was living with her and she had me in love with her son 6 months before we ever met. A year later I was looking for a summer job in South Texas to be closer to Eric who was living in Falfurrias.
I ended up going to Falfurrias in 1990 for a summer position as Student Assistant Pastor. Two weeks after I arrived, the pastor went on a much needed vacation and never came back. Needless to say, God made it clear to me that I was to stay there way past the summer months. I needed 5 more classes to have a Bachelor of Arts in Religion, Philosophy and Christian Education and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Instead, I stayed here and took one class and ended up with my BS in Business Administration and a minor in Religion.
In January of 1991, the long term interim of First Presbyterian in Premont had a stroke. I started serving Premont. March of 1991, Eric and I were married. Needless to say, I never made it to seminary. I often say that serving God got in the way of my going to seminary and that I do my woodwork to support my Preaching Habit. It wasn’t until I had been serving Premont as their pastor for almost 2 years that the Presbytery decided they needed to make me “Legal”. So in October 1992 I was made their Commissioned Lay Pastor (CLP) where I remained until April 2004. That is the “short” version of why I am not fully ordained in the Presbyterian Church and am a CLP instead. Since Premont, I have served as Interim Pastor in Corpus at Jackson Woods Presbyterian Church and as Chaplain at Presbyterian Pan American School.
When I am not busy with church work I am usually making sawdust. My husband and I have a Sawmill in Kingsville. We work mostly with Mesquite. We do everything except grow the trees. We cut them down, saw them into boards, sell the lumber, and make furniture and other small items. You can learn more about our business by looking at our web site:
www.mesquitetree.net Just in case you haven’t noticed, I am not very typical in anything I do.
My other great calling in life is my children. We have three: Laura is 15, Katy is 13 and Will is 4. The girls attend Academy High School in the Santa Gertrudis ISD. Both are excellent students. This year, Will is starting Pre-K at Santa Gertrudis on the King Ranch. They are all PERFECT kids. Will is named so because he was “The Will of God”! I think he knows just how special he is. We live on 10 acres in Kingsville at our sawmill. Our home is an underground geodesic dome home beside Santa Gertrudis Creek.
Dean and Marsha moved with their family to Alice in 1974 where Dean was employed as Alice High School Vocal/Choral Music director. His Bachelor of Music Education degree was earned at Bay University and Master of Music Education degree from Texas Tech. Dean formed and directed the Community Orchestra of Del Rio Texas, directed the New Braunfels High School and Junior High choirs, the Alice High School choirs, the Community Chorale in Alice, the Ecumenical Handbell Choir in Alice and the Chancel Choir at First Presbyterian in Alice. Marsha is our church organist. They have served our congregation since 1975.
We are very blessed to have such great musical talent in our church.
PNC - Pastor Nominating Committee
Email Our PNC - Pastor Nominating Committee has been working hard to find the pastor that God has chosen to lead our congregation. Please do your part to support them with your prayers and with the church budget so that they will be able to call a pastor who will be a good Spiritual leader for our congregation for many years to come.
Our PNC is:
Mike Day
Dean Krunkenberg
Debbie Salinas
Tom Young
Julie Hale
Wayne Klosterman
Officers of First Presbyterian - Elders
Elders
Elders are members of First Presbyterian Church of Alice who compose the Session, which is the governing body of the church. They serve for three years and oversee specific ministry areas during their terms. You may contact an elder by calling the church office at 664-5409.
Class of 2010
Melonae Day
Jan Young
Patrice McIntyre
Margaret Smith
Class of 2011
Connie Naugher
Cara Onken
Bill Robinson
Class of 2012
Bruce Seidel
Steve Pearson
Victoria King
